Maravi

C/belt MMD youths demand postponment of convention

C/belt MMD youths demand postponment of convention
Written by Mutuna Chanda in Kitwe

COPPERBELT MMD youths and the party's intelligence security unit in the province have demanded that the party's national convention due next year be postponed to between 2012 and 2014.

Copperbelt MMD youth chairman Evans Chibanda said there was no need to hold a convention in 2010 when President Banda had been endorsed by the party's national executive committee (NEC) as its sole candidate.

He said it would be too costly for the party to hold its national convention in 2010 and later mobilise funds to campaign for the general election in 2011.

"We are pleading with NEC to think of deferring the convention to between 2012 and 2014 with a vision of 2016...who doesn't know there is an economic meltdown? It will be too expensive for MMD to spend over K5 billion to hold a convention and then fund the 2011 campaigns," Chibanda said. "We know that our constitution says that every five years

NEC members will be subjected to an election but the convention which culminates into the presidency has been watered down by the decision of the NEC. The President is our sole candidate; he is virtually unopposed."

He said the MMD could get away with not holding a convention to elect NEC members.

"We are not saying we do away with it," he said. "What we are saying is defer it. There are parties in this country which have gone to general elections without going to an election. We are not emulating these parties but the climax of a convention is the presidency."

He said it would be misdirection of resources for the MMD to hold a convention while the party's constituencies did not have vehicles to mobilise.

"The vehicles that are in constituencies are all rotten," said Chibanda.

Chibanda said his sentiments were the general view of the MMD provincial executive committee.

And the Copperbelt MMD intelligence security unit in a statement signed by Fitzpatrick Sauka stated that President Banda was a great candidate who needed to be protected jealously by the party.

"Resources meant for the convention should be channelled to various sectors of our party...to help consolidate our new found unity ahead of the 2011 presidential elections," stated Sauka. "The people of Zambia elected Rupiah Bwezani Banda as President not HH [Hakainde Hichilema] or [Michael] Sata."

Labels: COPPER, ELECTIONS, EVANS CHIBANDA, MMD, YOUTHS

posted by MrK @ 1:43 PM